Members of Red River College’s women’s volleyball team played mentor to up-and-comers from across the province last weekend, at the first ever Rebels Girls Volleyball Classic.

Held Oct. 16th and 17th at RRC’s Notre Dame Campus, the event drew eight middle school teams for a day-long tournament, followed by a day’s worth of coaching clinics and skills camps run by RRC coaching staff and players.

“It’s something we’ve really been looking forward to doing – using our athletics program to be more active in the community, and to raise the profile of college sports by reaching out and helping these teams and these coaches develop,” said Dan Gilbert, RRC’s Recreation Coordinator and Men’s Volleyball Coach.

Saturday’s tournament drew eight teams from seven Manitoba schools: Blumenort School (in Ritchot), Ecole Seven Oaks Middle School, Edmund Partridge Community School, Lincoln School, Mennonite Brethren Collegiate Institute, Powerview School (in Powerview) and Springs Christian Academy (who entered two teams). In between games, the RRC’s Rebels squared off against Providence College.

A follow-up tournament and skills camp for boys’ teams is scheduled for Nov. 20th and 21st, with 16 teams currently registered. Gilbert says last weekend’s tourney has already drawn high praise from participants.

“We’ve had a lot of very positive feedback from the schools involved, saying it was a great event for both the coaches and athletes,” he said.

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